i Register
In some senses, misuse is marked as obsolete. Watch for register when choosing this word.
noun
An incorrect, improper or unlawful use of something.
The Queen may be celebrating her jubilee but the Queen's English Society, which has railed against the misuse and deterioration of the English language, is to fold.
verb
To use (something) incorrectly.
To abuse or mistreat (something or someone).
To rape (a woman); later more generally, to sexually abuse (someone).
“If that is true she would be the first case I have ever heard of, as most female captives are misused by the entire tribe.”
To abuse verbally, to insult.
Socrates was brought upon the stage by Aristophanes, and misused to his face: but he laughed, as if it concerned him not […].